


Detour

by randers1



Category: Chicago PD (TV), Upstead - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:54:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24515728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randers1/pseuds/randers1
Summary: Coming Soon
Relationships: Jay Halstead & Hailey Upton, Jay Halstead/Hailey Upton
Comments: 18
Kudos: 103





	1. Detour-ch 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own anything Dick Wolf holds dear.
> 
> And in true 'me' fashion, this was supposed to be a one shot Buuuuut will now be no more than 2-3 chapters.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hailey and jay—but not the easy way

Adam’s house was beautiful and the party he was throwing to show it off was fantastic, fun and typical Adam. A dj played music in the small courtyard at the back of the house (to the delight of his neighbors Hailey was sure), beers floated in ice filled coolers and chips of every kind were found around the house in bowls of different sizes, colors and functions.

Hailey and Jay were sitting on the stairs, people watching, each holding a bottle of beer.

“I could swear he said there’d be food…” Hailey mentioned rhetorically.

“Well, technically, chips are food.” Jay shrugged. “And I think I saw someone with a container of dip walking around so what, would that be like multiple courses?”

Hailey snorted, letting that go unanswered. “Man, I wish I’d eaten before this. It’d be bad to have a pizza delivered to a party, right?”

He looked at her and instantly had an answer. “How bout we stay for a little longer then go grab burgers at Kumas?” He was near beaming with the idea.

“Sounds like heaven,” she grinned back, then spotted Burgess and waved her over.

Kim leaned again the staircase railing. “I think I already stepped in something sticky.” She lifted her foot to inspect the bottom of her shoe before putting it down quickly. “Y’know what, maybe I don’t even want to know.”

“Smart bet,” Jay chuckled.

Hailey smiled in knowing agreement. “Hey, we’re gonna head over to Kumas in a little while if you want to join.”

“What, you’re not eating here? I heard the Doritos in the colander were _very_ good but if you’re _really_ hungry I think I saw Combos in a gravy boat somewhere…”

“Why the hell does Adam even have a gravy boat?” Hailey laughed.

Kim chuckled and shook her head. “Thanks guys but I’m gonna pass. I think I’m gonna stay, pretend that I’m not too old to be at this kind of party and hang around for a while, see what happens.”

Jay nodded. “Solid plan.”

They met up on the far corner after parking their cars and began the short walk to the restaurant.

“I swear to God if there’s a wait there’s going to be a problem.”

“What, are you gonna turn in to Hangry Hailey?” He grinned at her as they walked.

She shot him a warning look. “Seriously? It’s not pretty.”

His words were out before he could think. “Yeah, I doubt that’s even possible.”

Hailey gave a small embarrassed smile but didn’t respond. They walked in a weird silence for a moment.

Jay was kicking himself. Why the hell had he said that? Hailey’s natural good looks were obvious, nothing that needed to be mentioned, especially by him, especially when picturing her angry, and then maybe picturing other looks---again, he had to wonder just what the hell he was doing by allowing his mind to even wander there. No good would come of it he was certain.

They neared the restaurant and the change in Hailey’s demeanor was palpable. Jay knew there was a problem before even looking down to the corner where the line was out the door. 

Hailey stopped and sighed a quiet. “Ohhhkay,” then looked up to Jay. “Y’know what? This was a _great_ idea, thank you,” she smiled and put a hand to his bicep.” But I think I’m gonna just call it a night and head home.”

“Nope, sorry.” He denied her leaving. “I see our salvation.” He spoke slowly, grinned, and pointed ahead about a block. “Taco truck.”

They sat outside at a makeshift counter eating tacos and discussing the merits of the various levels of heat in the sauces they were taste testing. The laughter was loud and their smiles were permanent.

Hailey had just dabbed a sauce she’d never heard of on the next bite of taco and her reaction was instant. She could breathe but her eyes instantly watered and she sputtered while grabbing for her drink. She was laughing and teary-eyed and her face was blotchy; Jay’s breath hitched as he took in the moment. Without thinking he grabbed his phone and snapped a picture of her mid-laugh, head thrown back just a bit. When she calmed down she gestured to it. “Show that to anyone and you’ll be looking for a new partner.”

“Nope,” he assured her. “It’s just for me.” he smiled easily and she wasn’t sure what to say to that. She was sure she looked a mess so wasn’t quite sure why Jay would want that captured moment if not to tease her with it.

Hailey threw the rest of her taco back in the plastic basket before her, cleaned her hands with a wipe and then her face with a napkin. She sighed, full of content. “Thank you. This was amazing.”

Jay threw his own napkin down to his empty basket and stretched a bit. “Yeah, definitely a great way to spend the evening. Way better then chips and……chips.” His eyebrows went up as he made the joke.

Hailey nodded slightly and smiled, her thoughts mirroring his.

“I had a great time tonight Hailey.” He told her simply, not thinking about the meaning of his words. It was so easy to be honest with her. About most things. Not the thoughts he had of her and the feelings they inspired. Or maybe it was the other way around.

Hailey didn’t know what made her do it. But in this moment where the warm evening felt like velvet and they sat underneath a streetlight while sitting at a taco truck, she felt comfortable and so happy, and—solid. Whole. Everything was right, right in this moment.

She turned a bit and looked at him through the hair that fell beside her face. Her voice was quiet and soft when she agreed. “I did too Jay.” She put a hand on his shoulder using it as leverage to turn and lean in to him, obviously about to kiss him. Jay stared at her as she came closer, his eyes darkening and his breathing slowed.

He swallowed and gave her a crooked, half smile. “What are you doing Hailey?” His voice held the nerves he was feeling.

Immediately she pulled back, trying to recover but failing. “I’m so sorry, I just thought…I thought…”

Hailey could feel the fire on her cheeks as she blushed in complete embarrassment. She took a breath and exhaled deeply. “Wow. I sure do know how to read a situation, huh” she quipped. “Maybe I need to rethink my career choice.”

Jay was trying to read her as well. “No, no, no, I was just…..” _caught off guard, so happy it was terrifying_ , he screamed inwardly, wishing he could finish what he wanted to say. But his voice and reason failed him.

She looked straight ahead, knowing if she looked at her partner her cheeks would blaze again and she’d most likely lose the battle in keeping her tears at bay. She tried to keep her tone light, almost teasing. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance of you just… forgetting about this?”

He huffed and smiled tightly. “Forget about what?”

That was nice. He still had her back even when she just made a total ass out of herself.

She wore a quick rueful smile as she chanced a side eye look at him. “Thanks.” She hooked a thumb toward the direction they’d come from. “Soooo, I think I’m gonna….” She nodded, scrunching up her nose a bit as she got up from her stool.

She’d taken only a step away when he lightly grabbed the sleeve of her jacket, stopping her.

Jay looked at her, giving her one of those intense looks she’d obviously been misinterpreting for a long while. Regardless of that logic her damn stomach still flipped and her breath caught in her throat.

“Hailey,” his voice was low. He hesitated for a second before continuing. “We’re good,” he reminded her.

She nodded and gave what she knew was a fake smile and an even faker perky tone. “Great, that’s—that’s great.”

He watched her walk away and when she was gone he groaned and put two hands to his face, wondering how he could have screwed that up so badly. “What the fuck…” he whispered to himself.


	2. Detour ch 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Next stop on the apology tour....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nope, still not mine.

At home Hailey sat at the kitchen island, her elbows resting on the top as she rubbed at her temples. The glass of tequila sat before her, down to a fourth of the of what she’d started with.

How the hell had she misread him that badly? She couldn’t figure it out and could only assume that it had simply been all in her head. She knew he valued her, loved her maybe—but as a partner only. Okay. She could work with that. If only because she didn’t have a choice.

Her heart would heal, her embarrassment would fade. These are the things she told herself over and over, hoping if she said it enough then she’d begin to believe it.

A hot bath and another half gone from her glass of tequila later, Hailey found herself mindlessly channel surfing in the living room. She was interested in nothing but maintaining the clicking rhythm she’d created as she pushed the button on the remote as she went through all of the channels repeatedly.

At first she ignored the flash she saw from the corner of her eye. But then it repeated. And repeated again. She was slightly dulled from the alcohol but the responsible part of her pushed through that, reminding her that it could be work related. She rolled her eyes and groaned loudly as she put down the remote and reached for her phone. 6 unread texts and they were still coming in. They were all from Jay.

_Hailey._

_Are you there?_

_Can we talk?_

_Call me._

_Call me?_

_Please?_

_?_

_If you don’t want to talk that way text me instead._

_Can you text me?_

_I need to talk to you._

_Please?_

She was so tempted to simply go to his name and swipe to ‘delete’, erasing their entire text history of food and coffee orders, updates to pick up times, work related exchanges, the more recent good mornings, reminders to go to bed and sleep, follow up thank you’s for evenings spent drinking and talking, sometimes just talking. She caught herself before doing it and instead turned the phone back over. She didn’t want to hear or read his apologies for not feeling the same way, for denying her kiss, for making things awkward. She’d _just_ been shy of forgetting her early evening blunder but now the memory was back and putting on an absolute showstopper of a song and dance number in full costume and colorful scenery right in the forefront of her brain. She could feel the blush marching up from her chest to her cheeks. Great. She could re-live that moment again by will it seemed.

She reached for her glass and took a long pull from it. If anything, she could always count on the añejo for the slight dull and nice current it gave her. She sat back against the cushions and put her feet up on the coffee table, cradling her glass against her chest. She’d be needing another pour soon but for now she was too comfortable.

She must have dozed off. The loud continuous banging sound would have scared her if it had come out of nowhere. But she’d come to it slowly from her drowsy state, realizing it was coming from her front door. She sighed and turned her phone upright. More texts from Jay; the most recent one just three words long: _I’m coming over_.

She placed her glass on the island as she passed it and made her way to the front door. She opened it quickly and spoke tersely. “My neighbors are gonna call the police.”

Jay stood in front of her and then without being invited stepped around her and walked inside.

Hailey put out her hands, palms up, in wonder as she spoke to the floor in front of her.

“What are you doing here, Jay?”

“I screwed up.”

She looked over to him out of habit, out of instinct. What had he done in the hours since she’d left him?

“What’s up?” She let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes. She was still his partner and even though it was weird for now, still his best friend. She’d have to find a work around it but for now she’d just plow through and be there.

She closed the door and followed as he walked through her home to the couch and sat.

“Jay…” She was expecting him to talk but he wasn’t saying anything. She licked her lips. “Jay, listen it’s after midnight, I’m exhausted…If you need something I’m here but….you gotta talk to me.”

“You drinking?” He hoped the answer was no. He wanted to talk to her when she was clear-headed but he’d seen the near empty glass as he went through the kitchen.

The question took her by surprise. Hell, the fact that he was here took her by surprise. She was trying to close the door on this day so talking about it, any of it, wasn’t something she felt like doing. “I don’t think I’m going to answer that.”

He looked at her then looked away, saying “Fair enough” as he did so.

“Jay, why are you here?” She was just on the other side of becoming irritable. She wanted to finish her drink and go to sleep.

He shrugged and grimaced. “You wouldn’t answer your phone.”

Her tongue found a groove in a tooth and played with it. “Yeah,” she snorted a bit. “Funny how I just kind of wanted to be alone tonight.”

“I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings Hailey.” His voice was soft and gentle as were his eyes. He was completely apologetic. And Hailey didn’t want that.

She squinted a bit. “Can you not? Do that?”

“What?”

She shook her head, “It’s—fine. I misread the situation, I made a fool out of myself and now? Now I’d really like to try and forget about it. You don’t need to feel bad, you don’t need to apologize, in fact, I’d really love it the most if we could never _ever_ talk about it again.”

He looked her in the eye, his face somber. “I know. And I get it, I do. And if you want me to leave in a few minutes I’ll totally do that but first, I just wanted to talk to you.”

Hailey gave a slight nod and shifted her position so that her back was against the armrest of the couch, knees up to her chest. She could be responsible. She’d make herself stay the course and listen to him, just as she would have if it had been yesterday or even earlier in the afternoon

Jay’s expression was serious and she settled her own in to one that would match. Whatever he wanted to talk to her about, she’d take it as seriously. She always did.

“Earlier…at the taco truck—“

“ ** _Really_**?” she looked away. “Anything else I can talk with you about but—“

He interrupted her. “First of all, you don’t have anything to be embarrassed about. That’s why I wanted to talk to you.”

She looked past him as she stopped talking and he took a deep breath. “Hailey, tonight just—it took me by surprise.” He held up a hand and rushed the next part. “But not because I thought it was weird or didn’t want it.” He slowed again. “It was because I did want it. And as much as I did, I think…I think I convinced myself that it wouldn’t happen.” He scrubbed a hand over his face and turned to face her better. “God knows I’ve wanted it to…” He chuckled a bit and looked down at her couch cushion and again spoke slowly, earnestly. “I’ve wanted to kiss you a million times…and every time I didn’t I wished I had. Wished I’d just gone for it.”

Hailey spoke quietly, taking in what he was saying, uncertain if this was all real or a tequila induced dream. “Why didn’t you? What stopped you?”

He shrugged. “Us. The thought of messing it up, what we have. It’s kind of like, and I know this sounds ridiculous but it’s like the Kool Aid test…”

“The Kool Aid test” she repeated.

He smiled. “Yeah. When Will and I were kids, our mom would make it for us in the summer. It was like a special summer thing. But this one time we decided to make it on our own. There was a powder and you added water, and you had to add sugar in to make it sweet.”

She was looking at him intently, trying to follow the story.

“So we followed the directions and it was good.” He shrugged and nodded. “But then, I’m not sure which one of us had the idea, but we thought it would be even better with more sugar. So we put in a little bit more and yeah it was good, but we kept going with it and….” He chuckled at the memory and it was so pure and genuine that it made Hailey smile and give a little laugh of her own. “—it was absolutely disgusting. So yeah, The Kool Aid test. Having too much of something can ruin it, make it so you don’t ever want it again.”

Tentatively, uncertain of what her reaction would be, he reached out and put a hand on her knee. “I didn’t want that to happen. To us. Hailey, as much as I wanted to, I don’t even know what to call it, _be more_ with you, I thought I’d rather be just your partner than nothing at all. I don’t know if any of that makes sense to you but…I wanted you to know.”

She bit her bottom lip and nodded, thinking. “Yeah. No, I get it.” She did. She’d felt similarly for so long, up until the nanosecond before she went to kiss him earlier.

He surprised her, continuing. “But after you left tonight, I started thinking about it and realized that our partnership isn’t guaranteed. Nothing is. Voight could switch partners tomorrow, he’s done it before---you could get tasked out again—“

“Or you,” she interjected softly.

“Okay, sure” he appeased, rolling his eyes a bit, obviously humoring her. “What I’m saying though is that when you left tonight, I realized that I didn’t _like_ being without you _.”_

Hailey furrowed her brow, seeing where he was going. She held tight to any hope, waiting to see if the rug would be pulled out at the last second.

“Hailey, I’d rather try this than never know.”

She looked at him just over her knees, her poker face in full effect.

He huffed and fell in to a lopsided smirk. “You’re gonna make me work for this aren’t you?”

Her reply was immediate. “Damn straight.” She couldn’t suppress the small smirk that appeared on her face.

He shifted his position, pulling himself closer to her, and grinned. “Okay, I get it, I owe you…”

Her eyes followed him, expectant and hopeful, and it was nearly his undoing.

He leaned in, watching her as he did. When he was just about close enough to kiss her she spoke, her voice husky.

“Jay. What are you doing?”

He wasn’t going to be baited. He knew she was just paying him back from earlier. His eves didn’t leave hers. “I’m going to kiss you.”

She nodded a bit, smiling as he was right before her. “Yeah?”

“Oh yeah,” Jay answered, smiling back.

She smirked and taunted, “So get to it already.”

He laughed a bit but the sound got lost as soon as he touched his lips to hers.

Soft kisses, exploring tongues, exploring hands, and soon Hailey slid downward with Jay prone on top of her.

With each hand holding her face he pulled back. “Y’know I’m kinda glad I didn’t kiss you back before.”

Hailey grimaced, forcing herself up on her elbows. “Why’s that?”

“Cuz doing this on the street wouldn’t have been nearly as good.” He smirked and kissed her again as she swatted at him.


End file.
